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Home , 2016 European Open, 2020 Australian Open, 2020 French Open, 2020 Open 13, 2020 US Open (tennis), 2021 Australian Open

Eleven Past Champions Headline Western & Southern Open Fields WTA, ATP Tour Stars Return to Aug. 14-22

CINCINNATI, Ohio (July 21, 2021) – and , the No. 1 ranked players in the world who are fresh off Wimbledon titles, highlight the initial singles entry list for the 2021 Western & Southern Open.

The Top 20 players in both the ATP Tour and WTA Tour have entered the event, which will be held Aug. 14-22. The field also includes 11 former tournament winners, including the defending champions Djokovic and Azarenka, both two-time Western & Southern Open winners.

Cincinnati will welcome five former champions in the WTA field, featuring Karolina Pliskova (2016), Garbiñe Muguruza (2017), and (2019) along with two-time champions and Azarenka. In addition to Djokovic, former ATP champions returning to Cincinnati in 2021 include (2019), (2013), (2017), Marin Cilic (2016) and seven-time champion .

The women’s field is also highlighted by 13 total Major champions, with recent winners including 2020 Western & Southern Open finalist (2020 US Open, 2021 ), Barbora Krejcikova (2021 ), () and Iga Swiatek (). Eight entrants have held WTA's No. 1 , with Azarenka, Barty, Osaka, Pliskova, Muguruza and Williams being joined by multi-time Cincinnati finalists and .

In addition to the wealth of experience among the women’s field, 10 participants are 23 or younger. Leading the WTA youth movement is 17-year-old Cori "Coco" Gauff, who will make her debut in Cincinnati following a quarterfinal finish in the 2021 French Open.

Djokovic’s Western & Southern Open title defense will come as he chases history this season. The winner of the year’s first three Majors, he is bidding to be the first man since in 1969 to complete a calendar . The trio of Major titles this season has drawn him level with Federer and Nadal atop the all- time list, with each having won 20 titles at Grand Slam tournaments. A trio of former US Open champions are also on the Cincinnati entry list: (2020), Wawrinka (2016) and Cilic (2014).

The men’s field comprises the top 43 players in the ATP rankings and will have 11 players aged 23-or- younger competing. Leading the ATP youth charge is 19-year-old , who held a career-high ranking of 17 earlier in 2021 and reached the 2020 French Open Quarterfinals.

The initial entrants to both fields are as follows:

Rank Name Age Nat. Rank Name Age Nat.

1 Novak Djokovic 34 SRB 1 Ashleigh Barty 25 AUS

2 Daniil Medvedev 25 RUS 2 Naomi Osaka 23 JPN

3 Rafael Nadal 35 ESP 3 23 BLR

4 22 GRE 4 Sofia Kenin 22 USA

5 24 GER 5 21 CAN

6 Dominic Thiem 27 AUT 6 26 UKR

7 Audrey Rublev 23 RUS 7 Karolina Pliskova 29 CZE

8 25 ITA 8 Iga Swiatek 20 POL

9 Roger Federer 39 SUI 9 Garbiñe Muguruza 27 ESP

10 22 CAN 10 Simona Halep 29 ROU

11 Pablo Carreno Busta 29 ESP 11 Barbora Krejcikova 25 CZE

12 24 POL 12 24 SUI

13 28 ARG 13 Petra Kvitova 31 CZE

14 22 NOR 14 31 BLR

15 Felix Auger-Aliassime 20 CAN 15 26 USA

16 33 ESP 16 Serena Williams 39 USA

17 22 AUS 17 25 BEL

18 Gael Monfils 34 FRA 18 30 RUS

19 Cristian Garin 25 CAN 19 25 GRE

20 30 CHI 20 22 KAZ

21 Grigor Dimitrov 30 BUL 22 Angelique Kerber 33 GER

22 30 CAN 23 26 TUN

23 Jannik Sinner 19 ITA 24 Karolina Muchova 24 CZE

24 27 RUS 25 Cori Gauff 17 USA

25 25 RUS 26 Madison Keys 26 USA

26 26 ITA 27 27 USA

27 Daniel Evans 31 GBR 28 25 EST

28 23 FRA 29 23 ESP

29 36 SUI 30 Jelena Ostapenko 24 LAT

30 25 GBR 31 24 RUS

31 34 ITA 32 Petra Martic 30 CRO

32 23 USA 33 24 RUS

33 Borna Coric 24 CRO 34 26 RUS

34 Filip Krajinovic 29 SRB 35 26 KAZ

35 Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 22 ESP 36 31 USA

36 Marin Cilic 32 CRO 37 Tamara Zidansek 23 SLO

37 23 USA 38 24 ARG

38 Marton Fucsovics 29 HUN 39 Sorona Cirstea 31 ROU

39 36 USA 40 30 GBR

40 24 KAZ 41 Markéta Vondroušová 22 CZE

41 33 FRA 42 28 USA

42 29 GEO 44 27 USA

43 Albert Ramos-Vinolas 33 ESP

69* 31 JPN BOLD Indicates Past Western & Southern Open Champion *Current ranking, entry secured with injury protected ranking

The top eight seeds in both draws will receive first round byes. Eight women and seven men will be added to the fields through a two-round qualifying tournament that will be held Aug. 14-15. Four men and as many as five women will be awarded entries into the main draw singles fields.

Tournament action will take place Aug. 14-22, where first will take place at 10 a.m. on Aug. 14 for the qualifying tournament. The men’s and women’s singles finals will take place on Sunday, Aug. 22. The schedule is available here.

All tickets, including full series, mini-plans, single session and hospitality packages, are now on sale and information about available tickets can be found here.

The Western & Southern Open, an ATP Masters 1000 and a WTA 1000, is part of the US Open Series and is held at the Lindner Family Center in Mason, Ohio.

About the Western & Southern Open Founded in 1899, the Western & Southern Open is an ATP Masters 1000 and a WTA 1000 tournament. The Western & Southern Open annually welcomes nearly 200,000 fans who come from all 50 states and more than 35 countries and is seen by more than 50 million global viewers in over 160 countries. The tournament is also one of the last stops on the US Open Series before the US Open in . Since 1974, the tournament has contributed more than $11 million to various beneficiaries including Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, the Barrett Cancer Center and Tennis for City Youth. The tournament is held at the Lindner Family Tennis Center, 20 miles north of Cincinnati in Mason, Ohio. For more information, visit www.wsopen.com.

About the US Open Series The US Open Series serves as a true “regular season” of summer tennis in North America, linking nine WTA and ATP Tour tournaments to the US Open. Featuring a cohesive weekly viewing schedule, as well as comprehensive outreach and grassroots engagement initiatives, the Series serves as a vital platform to promote and grow the game of tennis in person and at home. Fans can follow along all summer as today’s top champions go -to-head with tomorrow’s emerging stars, while each tournament engages its local community with a variety of programs geared toward showcasing and promoting the game to new and existing fans.

About the WTA Founded by in 1973 on the principle of equal opportunity for women in sports, the WTA is the global leader in women’s professional sport with more than 1,650 players representing 84 nations competing for a record $180 million in prize money. In 2019, the WTA was watched by a record-breaking global audience of 700 million. The 2020 WTA season includes 55 events and four Grand Slams in 29 countries and regions. The season culminates with the Shiseido WTA Finals Shenzhen, offering a $14 million total prize purse and honoring the season’s top singles and doubles players. Further information on the WTA can be found at www.wtatennis.com.

About the ATP As the global governing body of men’s professional tennis, the ATP’s mission is to serve tennis. We entertain a billion global fans, showcase the world’s greatest players at the most prestigious tournaments, and inspire the next generation of fans and players. From the ATP Cup in , to Europe, the Americas and Asia, the stars of the game battle for titles and FedEx ATP Rankings points at ATP Masters 1000, 500 and 250 events, and Grand Slams. All roads lead towards the Nitto ATP Finals, the prestigious season finale held in Turin, . Featuring only the world’s top 8 qualified singles players and doubles teams, the tournament also sees the crowning of the year-end ATP World No. 1, the ultimate achievement in tennis. For more information, please visit www.ATPTour.com.